Do you remember the ALS ice bucket challenge last summer? Folks across the country poured buckets of ice water over their heads to raise awareness for Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS. One of the biggest advocates for ALS patients is our own Steve Gleason, formerly with the Saints. He was diagnosed with ALS in January 2011.

This month, we got a big win for the ALS community – Congress passed my Steve Gleason Act, which will make the speech-generating devices that ALS patients use more accessible and affordable. Click here to read more.

Steve and the rest of Team Gleason have been an incredible inspiration. Thanks to their tireless work, we’ll be able change the lives of ALS patients and their families.

Please continue reading below to learn more about other ways I’m working to serve Louisiana in the U.S. Senate.

I’m concerned that the Obama Administration is putting our country in a dangerous position – from its really bad nuclear deal with Iran to its sanctuary cities policies that are endangering folks across the country. Continue reading below to learn more about these issues.

Earlier this month, President Obama announced a nuclear deal between the United States and five other nations with Iran. Frankly, this agreement is a really bad deal for America, for Israel, and for freedom. First, under its own terms, the deal accepts Iran eventually getting nuclear weapons. Second, there are huge holes in verification which, to me, make it certain that Iran will successfully cheat. I’ve introduced legislation that would try to help fix this. Click here to read more.

You may have heard about a tragic incidence in San Francisco recently where a young woman, Kate Steinle, was killed by an illegal immigrant who had previously been deported five times after seven felony convictions. He was allowed to live in San Francisco because it’s considered a sanctuary city, or a city that refuses to comply with federal immigration laws. I’ve introduced legislation that would withhold funding from these cities if they continue to ignore our immigration laws. Click here to read more.

Roads and infrastructure are literally the foundation of our everyday lives. That’s why I’ve been working on a long-term highway bill that will make the updates that our nation’s roads and bridges desperately need. And our bill will reduce traffic congestion, which will allow folks to spend less time in traffic and more time with their families. The Senate passed a short-term highway bill this month, and I’ll continue working on legislation to make these long-term investments. Click here to read more.

I’ve been fighting for years to end Washington’s Exemption from Obamacare. It’s a loophole that allows Washington insiders to get a special subsidy to offset their healthcare costs. As Chair of the Senate Small Business Committee, I led an investigation into how this exemption came to be created. My report documents how Congress exempted itself from Obamacare by qualifying itself as a “small business” – even though it employs roughly 15,000 people. Click here to read more.

Five years ago today, the Dodd-Frank financial reform act was signed into law and sold to people as a fix to prevent Wall Street megabank bailouts. But unfortunately, “too big to fail” is far from over. Frankly, it’s more institutionalized now than ever before. On top of that, community banks are under attack by incredibly burdensome regulations enacted by this legislation

We need to adopt a fundamentally different approach to financial reform that’s focused on simpler, more targeted reforms. As a member of the Senate Banking Committee, I’ve introduced bipartisan legislation with Senator Sherrod Brown to even the playing field and better protect taxpayers like you from bailout out the megabanks. It would also give smaller community banks some significant regulatory relief. Earlier this year, I also introduced the Bailout Prevention Act to halt megabank bailouts during a financial crisis. And with Republicans taking control of the Senate, the Senate Banking Committee has also been hard at work crafting a regulatory relief bill that would ease the regulatory burden from Dodd-Frank.

As of February, there are 1,342 fewer community banks in the U.S. than there were in June 2010. This stat is heartbreaking, as financial institutions that once served as the backbone of communities across this country have shuttered due to the ridiculous costs associated with complying with Dodd-Frank. In May, we passed The Financial Regulatory Improvement Act of 2015 through the Banking Committee. I’m working hard to reach an agreement on a far-reaching bipartisan bill that would ease community banks regulatory burden, allowing them to thrive and prosper once again.

If another financial crisis happened tomorrow – and that’s still a real risk – nobody doubts that megabanks would be calling on the federal government to bail them out again. This anniversary is not one to celebrate, and that’s why I’m fighting to make sure that taxpayers aren’t footing the bill.

I’m proud to share some exciting news out of Congress. The House of Representatives passed my bipartisan legislation, the Steve Gleason Act of 2015!

This legislation was inspired by Steve Gleason. As you probably know, Steve is a former professional football player with the Saints, and he currently lives with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). While fighting the disease, he has led his foundation, Team Gleason, to grow public awareness towards finding a cure for ALS. Steve has been relentless in his advocacy, living up to the Team Gleason motto: No White Flags!

Passing this legislation is a huge victory for ALS patients across the country because it will make speech-generating devices more accessible and affordable.

These devices are truly amazing. For example, the device that Steve Gleason uses tracks the motion of his eyes and translates that motion into speech. Devices like this are critical for patients who have lost their ability to speak – they help them communicate with friends, family or doctors, or even call 911 in case of emergencies.

Now our legislation will bring this type of technology to patients across the country that cannot afford them on top of their other healthcare costs. Making this equipment more accessible and affordable will give them the ability to communicate with their family and friends – even literally giving them a voice and the ability to simply tell them “I love you.”

Passing this legislation has been more than a year in the works. I started working on this issue in 2014—and even participated in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge with my son Jack—and first introduced this legislation in January. That was around the time I invited Steve to come to Washington D.C. as my guest to the State of the Union this year. We also met with the Secretary of Health and Human Services about getting her help to move our legislation forward.

Steve and the rest of Team Gleason have been an incredible inspiration. Just as Steve gave the city of New Orleans hope to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina, his “No White Flags” message is giving hope to the ALS community.

Thanks to Team Gleason’s tireless work, we can bring this hope to patients across the country.

Wendy and I want to wish you and your family a happy 4th of July. Our country is the land of the free thanks to the many men and women who have answered the call to serve our country. I send my gratitude to them and their families, and all those who make America the greatest country on Earth.

It’s an honor to serve Louisiana in the U.S. Senate, where I’m constantly reminded of the rights our country has always stood for and those we still work to protect. Please continue reading below to learn more about some of the ways I’m working to serve Louisiana in the U.S. Senate.

Roads and infrastructure are literally the foundation of our everyday lives. But unfortunately, Louisiana faces major infrastructure problems. We need to build and improve more roads, bridges, lanes, and mass-transit systems. That’s why I passed legislation out of the Senate transportation committee that will improve our roads, highways, and transportation infrastructure. The Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act (or DRIVE Act) will make the updates we need – including investments to reduce traffic congestion. This bill will allow folks to spend less time in traffic and more time with their families – it’s a win-win for everyday Americans and our economy. Click here to read more.

Since last year, I’ve been working with Steve Gleason and his foundation, Team Gleason, on legislation to make speech generating devices (SGDs) more accessible and affordable for patients across the country. Our fight took a big step forward this month, when the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee passed our legislation. Now we just need a vote before the full House of Representatives. Click here to read more.

My amendment to protect jobs for the blind and disabled was passed as part of the Defense Department funding bill. The amendment specifically protects programs like the New Orleans Lighthouse for the Blind, which employs over 180 Louisianans. Last year, the program lost 40 jobs as a result of the Obama Administration’s initiative to shift jobs to foreign employers. There should be no question that these jobs – which directly support our national defense – should go to American citizens instead of foreign employers. Click here to read more.

We can make great strides toward protecting and dignifying innocent human life by putting an end to late-term abortions – when an unborn child can feel physical pain. That’s why I’ve co-sponsored the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. Every step toward ending abortions once and for all is an important step in the right direction. Click here to read more.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has again delayed critical services for our veterans – this time over religious freedom. The VA has withdrawn from a contract to provide a desperately-needed and long-promised temporary clinic in Lafayette. The VA’s reason for withdrawal was common contractual language intended to protect freedom of religion. I have asked the VA why this withdrawal occurred. Our veterans deserve a completed facility, where they can get appropriate treatment. Click here to read more.

Do you feel like you spend too much time in traffic? From going to and from work to picking up the kids from school, we rely on our roads to get us there – and traffic can make it a real challenge to get everything done.

Roads and infrastructure are literally the foundation of our everyday lives. But unfortunately, Louisiana faces major infrastructure problems. Our highway system is 40th in the nation, and our interstates come in at 48th. Our Louisiana bridges currently rank 10th in the nation as the most deficient. And on top of that, New Orleans and Baton Rouge both rank in the top 25 in the nation for traffic congestion.

We need to build and improve more roads, bridges, lanes, and mass-transit systems. Investing in these infrastructure updates can spur new jobs, shorten commutes, and encourage greater economic opportunities for businesses.

That’s why I passed legislation out of the Senate transportation committee this week that will improve our roads, highways, and transportation infrastructure. The Developing a Reliable and Innovative Vision for the Economy Act (or DRIVE Act) will make the updates we need – including investments to reduce traffic congestion. This bill will allow folks to spend less time in traffic and more time with their families – it’s a win-win for everyday Americans and our economy.